CHAPTER SIXTEEN - CAPTURED

The air inside the base was saturated with nervous tension that ran about prickling the skin and sending shudders down everybody’s spine. You could almost feel the oppression and the heaviness that sat upon everybody’s shoulders and malevolently whispered foreboding omens into their ears.

Brian felt even more anxiety pressing down upon him than he had in the reserve med centre as he made his way down the corridor passing groups of people who were all kitted up for the imposing battle that was looming its ugly head upon them. He no longer had much of a headache, but his head was spinning form the anxiety that surrounded him.

He wanted to help, but he was not able to even do that. He felt like an observer in this time instead of a participant and he was aware that his adrenaline was beginning to overflow inside of him. He was not allowed to help b and Sammy and he was not allowed to help his friends. He had never felt this hopeless before…

He found himself leaning against a craggy wall for support and covered a face with his hand. His stomach seemed to have begun to leap about his chest with nerves and refused to keep still or prevent him from feeling sick. Everything was at stake now…

It felt like forever since he’d seen Sammy, and even B. He missed them. At least in his own time he had always been secure that they were safe. He had assumed that they could live without fear, but all that had been a lie. They had never been safe…

He thought of B and the last time he’d seen him. B’s cheeks had been streaked with grubby tears as he tried to cope with the extraordinary situation he had been in of being faced with two fathers. He was so vulnerable.

‘B… I miss you.’

Before he had had Bri to occupy his mind and their strange bond which kept him connected to the twin’s emotions, but now he had left the base and Brian had no distraction. Suddenly the full horror had wormed its way deep into his head. B was stuck in a Gerai base and probably having experiments run on him.

A fist seemed to reach up inside of him and viciously squeeze his heart and he closed his eyes for a moment. He couldn’t take this for much longer… No matter how many times he tried to reassure himself, the worries were there. Maybe he felt even worse now because of the impending attack that was about to strike them. He could almost felt he thickness of the air as it seemed to charge itself with the fear of all those within the base.

‘We’re gonna be fine,’ he told himself. Darren would not let the place fall, but Brian knew what bothered the man. Nowadays the Gerai seemed full of unpleasant surprises…

He wondered what Sammy was up to and if he was taking care of his brother. Would they even be allowed to see each other?

Sammy could take care of himself, Brian was certain of that but he was still a sensitive man and he wouldn’t fare well amongst the harsh Gerai, even though he was strong. He only hoped that he was with B. he had seen them together and knew that Sammy had a tendency to forget that B was his brother and treat him more like a son. The bond had made him jealous at first, he had been unable to look at them without wishing that he shared the same love with them but he had slowly grown to understand.

‘I hope you’re both all right…’ he thought dismally. ‘Just hold on until Bri gets there…’

“Brian!” a voice suddenly yelled. “Brian, shouldn’t you be with the others in the security caverns by now? It’s almost time!”

Brian turned to see AJ rushing towards him, clad in his combat gear with his pack and laser on his back. A wave of something cold hit him and he averted his eyes. AJ would be out there risking his life along with all the rest of Brian’s friends and he could do nothing but take a side seat away from them all. He wasn’t even allowed to help B and Sammy, the two people he would do anything for. Unfortunately, the only way he could help them without risking their lives as well as his own was just by being here and praying.

“I’m going,” he said half-heartedly. “I just wanted a walk.” Darren had told him almost an hour ago to get down into the security caverns, but Brian had felt the urge to walk. He needed time to think…

He should have been down there a while ago though now. Somehow though a aprt of him was not so willing to stand aside and wait.

AJ frowned at him slightly and Brian tried to turn away as he felt those dark eyes burrowing into him. Quickly AJ placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry,” he said. “Everything will be okay and we won’t let ourselves get hurt. As for B and Sammy, well Bri will bring them back and he’s you…”

“No,” Brian replied as he pushed AJ’s hand away. “He’s not me. I’m me and he’s some… other guy that I don’t know. Don’t say it’s the same as me going after them because it’s not, okay? I’m the one that’s left here unable to do anything!” He took a deep breath as he finished his rant and then closed his eyes. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” AJ said. “I guess it is hard for you. Just… be patient.”

“AJ, if it was your daughter who had been captured and you were in my place, what would you do?” he asked softly. He had to know. Nobody understood but maybe another parent would…

AJ opened his mouth and then closed. He opened it again. “Well - ”

And then the attack began.

Brian gave a sudden cry as the floor lurched up to greet him with a hideous smile and groaned as he hit the floor hard. A low rumble filled the air and the ground shook again. Brian thought that his heart might actually wear out and stop with the pace it was thumping at. He raised his head and winced as blood dribbled down his face.

“It’s begun,” AJ muttered as he picked himself up off the floor and helped Brian up. “They’re bombarding us with grenades.”

“Oh God,” Brian muttered, his chest turning fiery and icy all at the same time in a shuddering lurch.

“Relax, they never do much damage this far underground, but they do make some noise and shake the place up a little. Brian, get down to those security caves now and I’ll get to my post. Stay away from the entrances on your way there, okay? We’ve got people stationed at every entrance but Darren doesn’t want you caught in the cross fire. They’ll also still be a few others going down to the security caverns. You see anyone, tell them to get down there and not to worry. The attack has just started a little earlier than we expected.”

Brian gulped slightly, his body still trembling from the suddenness of the attack. It was all happening right now. There was no more time for nervous anticipation because it was here. Now all Brian could do was sit and wait it out.

“Don’t worry Brian,” AJ said. “I’ll see you when this is over.” He pressed his hands upon his shoulders for a moment and then he was running down the corridor towards wherever he was supposed to be stationed. Most of the fighters were outside ready to engage the Gerai troops directly but the others like AJ and Darren would be securing the three entrances, especially the southern entrance which Brian had heard was nothing more than a hole thanks to Lance’s explo-charges.

Hurriedly he quickened his pace towards the security caverns and his eyes nervously darted about the empty corridors in case the Gerai should come down upon him.

‘Damn it, I should be in those caverns. Darren will kill me,’ he thought inwardly. And B and Sammy needed him to stay alive.

The ground shook again and he flew into a wall with a startled yelp. AJ may have said that it wasn’t bad, but it felt that way. As he slid down the slope leading to one of the lower levels though he was aware that the trembles and noises were growing fainter. He sighed as he slipped down one of the empty corridors. He would probably be the last to arrive when he got there.

Suddenly there was a huge crashing noise and the sound of tumbling rock as the floor shook so violently that Brian found himself hitting the ground before he could grab onto a wall to support himself. He groaned and raised his head slightly as he realised that he could hear nearby voice… and weapons fire. The screeching he could suddenly hear was the sound of laser fire.

‘Oh God…’ he thought. He stared about him trying to determine the exact location of the corridor. He was near the northern entrance, the opposite to where the main attack would be taking place…

“It’s a trap,” he whispered to himself. “A diversion.” Lance blew out the southern entrance and Darren would automatically increase security there and people wouldn’t think so much about the other two. The main assault was nothing more than a diversion…

He crawled along the ground and kept close to the wall for a moment before tentatively creeping to his feet and carefully inching his way towards the entrance. His heart was beating rapidly and each hard thump sent cold adrenaline pumping through his veins. In his time he was not used to weapons fire or fearful attacks, but there was something inside that seemed to remember a military role. Of course, Bri would have been used to it.

‘What do I do?’ He wasn’t Bri though, he was himself and he knew nothing. He had survived before by sheer luck and desperation. He was a pacifist, not a warrior. He had always hated violence and dreaded war in his own reality. He had no idea how to react in this time… This wasn’t an action film where the hero always won. This was reality and dangerous. Brian could feel the fear of what he was hearing shaking him inside.

After everything he had been through to protect B and Sammy though, he had grown much stronger. He may not have been a trained fighter but his experience last time had embedded a deep instinct within him. He could feel his ears strained to pick out voices and footsteps as the weapons continued to fire, trying to determine how many people there was. Unconsciously he began to move in stealth, his footsteps light and soundless as he slid forwards.

He heard another slice of screaming, harsh laser ire spitting viciously through the air and Brian winced and cringed as he heard a startled cry of pain even though he did not know for certain if it was Gerai or resistance member. He still did not like the idea of war or battles, even if the opponent did consist of monsters.

He wanted to run and help. Somehow he wanted to stop this, but then Bri flickered into his mind and his warning. He was right though, if anything happened to him Bri would never exist and, worse, it would after Sammy and B.

He lowered his head as he heard another scream of pain, not knowing who it was or if the resistance were fighting the Gerai off. There couldn’t be many of them down here and it would be easy for the Gerai. Darren’s numbers had been stretched ever since the ‘end’ of the war when most people had left to live normal lives.

He tentatively stared about him, checking that he was not being watched by any of the Gerai and then began to run. He had to tell the others and warn them. What if they weren’t aware what was happening? The Gerai could take this base from the inside out…

He anxiously peered into the first room he saw and swore as he realised it was only a store room. ‘Shit, shit.’ Normally Brian hated to sue such words but at a time like this other minor phrases did not seem to fit.

He ran quicker and then skidded to a halt as he caught sight of a console in the next room. “Thank God.” He carefully began to press the panels, relieved that Sammy had once vaguely shown him out to work these computers before. All he needed to do was to send a signal to the main office where Darren would be co-ordinating the attack.

“Darren, pick up!” he gasped. “Please!”

“Brian?” a voice said from the speaker. “Brian what’s going on? I’m rather busy!”

“Darren, we’ve got company at the northern end of the base! The Gerai have busted in. The side Lance blew out was a diversion! The main attack is down here!” he gabbled, his eyes flitting nervously to the door. He could still hear the lasers and they wouldn’t be far away. It was a one way corridor so they were bound to come his way…

“Fuck it. You’re certain?”

Brian nodded and then realised that Darren couldn’t see the gesture. “Yes. I don’t think there’s many though.”

“Okay, Brian get out of there! I’ll give you two minutes to run and then I’m going to initiate a lock down at that end and at the western entrance. No one will get in then but I need you out of there! I don’t want you locked in with the Gerai!” Darren’s voice was loud as it always was when the situation was urgent.

Brian nodded again. “Sure thing.” He looked at the door again and then clenched his clammy hands into fists. His entire body seemed to be damp with perspiration now.

“Okay, good luck and… thanks. The alarms didn’t detect and intrusion so we wouldn’t have known if it wasn’t for you.”

Brian smiled, glad that Darren seemed to appreciate having him around. He guessed that Darren though was still partly annoyed by his reckless nature but that he had also learnt to try and tolerate it. “No problem.”

“Now get running! You got two minutes!”

“I’m a going!” Brian slammed his hand upon the panel to end the communication and then he heard the sound from behind him that sounded like a shout.

“What the - ” Brian looked up but it was too late. A huge man was bowling into him and knocking him to the ground. In a split second all the breath had been forced from his lungs and he could only splutter and gasp before a punch struck his face and filled it with an aching bruise. He gave a startled cry and tried flimsy to push the man off of him but his attempts were in vain. He found his hands being held down and a leering face was brought close to his own where Brian could see the flickers of malevolence in the man’s eyes.

“Well, well, well, trying to send to warn them of our arrival were you?” the man hissed.

“I already did,” Brian snapped before sucking back and then spitting in the man’s eyes. He knew this man was a Gerai and he wanted nothing more then to express his loathing of them for ruining his youngest son’s life. The thoughts of B and Sammy and their current situation forced more adrenaline into his blood. As the Gerai gave a groan of disgust and released Brian’s hand to wipe away the spittle, Brian kicked his legs straight into the man’s groin.

“Fuck - ”

Brian dealt the man a punch and then he was pushing him away and struggling to his feet before he felt something press into the small of his back.

“It appears we have a feisty one,” another voice sneered. “Nice fighting buddy, but you’re way outnumbered. Turn around slowly.”

Heat rose in Brian’s face in a striking and nervous contrast with the ice that had suddenly rushed into his stomach. He could hear the distant thud of his heart in his ears and he knew that he was caught. Slowly he raised his hands and turned, half expecting a scream of a laser blast to rip into his chest.

In front of him was a small, wiry man with dark hair and an evil smirk etched across his narrow face. He held a laser ominously close to Brian’s chest and the green throbbing coil beside the trigger indicated that it was charged and ready. Behind him were three others and instead of the usual Gerai uniforms they wore more camouflage type overalls coloured with browns and greens.

“You think you can take us all on… Brian?” the leader asked.

Brian stared at him and to his annoyance he realised that his surprise at the man knowing his name had registered upon his face. The leader grinned and chuckled slightly. “Yes, I know you’re name. Everybody knows you and what you did. Because of you we lost most of our army and nearly all of our bases and our work.” As he spoke his voice dropped to a malignant hiss and he pressed the gun closer to Brian who instinctively backed away. The mouth of the gun slowly slid up his chest until it was pointed at his neck. “I should murder you where you stand. We almost lost everything and it was all because of you.”

Brian could feel sweat sliding down between his armpits in slow trickles that made him shiver. He could smell the burning of the laser from previous blasts as it pressed into his neck. He struggled to stop himself from showing his fear and swallowed a gulp which only resulted in a strangled gasp.

“You can’t kill me,” he whispered as he licked his dry lips. “Kill me and you lose the only thing you have left.”

The leader stared hard at him and Brian had begun to wonder if he actually realised that he was from the past instead of the Brian Littrell in this time, before the laser was suddenly brought across his face.

Brian gave a yelp of pain and then fell back, his hand reaching to his face where blood had begun to dribble from a slice in his cheek. He stared at the man before him but then a knee was suddenly thrust up between his legs.

“Uh… argh…” He groaned as hot pain seemed to seize his body and sear up until every part of him was engulfed. He stumbled forwards and hit the ground, writhing in pain that clawed at his skin.

“Sir? Wouldn’t it be advisable not to… damage him too much? Especially concerning…” one of the other Gerai tried to venture.

The captain merely laughed and Brian was dimly aware of a foot tentatively prodding him. He slowly opened his eyes and gasped as pain seemed to hit him again. He raised his head and stared up at his perpetrator weakly.

The captain leant down beside him and stared at him with mock concern before he tangled a hand in Brian’s brown curls and yanked him to his feet. “Up!” he snapped.

Brian gave a scream of agony as his scalp erupted with a soreness that seemed to burn and enflame his entire head. He tried to throw his arms against the Gerai but his opponent laughed and used his other hands to deflect them.

“I may not be able to kill you,” he hissed. “But believe me, I can still hurt you Littrell. We are well aware that you came from the past and we have all the information you could imagine on you and your alter ego.” A punch suddenly connected with Brian’s stomach and Brian gave a gargled moan as his churning belly seemed to contort at the blow.

“Bastard,” he spat as he choked on his own ragged breaths.

“I practice,” the captain said as he threw Brian back down to the floor. He suddenly reached into his pack on his side and pulled out a rusty pair of handcuffs. He grabbed hold of Brian’s wrists tightly and then yanked them behind his back and snapped the handcuffs securely down. Brian winced slightly as his arms were twisted back and bit down on his lip as he felt the metal slicing into his wrists.

“You, Joel” the Gerai captain said as he pointed to the same burly man who had first floored Brian. “Go out and search this surrounding area. We need to get into the heart of this base.”

The coldness that had consumed him was suddenly replaced by something soothing as he smiled. “You won’t be bale to go anywhere. Darren has already locked down this area. The only place to go is where you came from: out.”

“Shut the fuck up!” the captain snapped as he slapped Brian’s face.

Brian winced. The bruises that Bri had given him on the day of his arrival seemed fated never to be able to heal. He lowered his head and closed his eyes. He could feel pain rubbing his entire body and below that was the fear. He had met Gerai before and every single time he was unnerved by what he saw in their eyes. There did not seem to be a human soul present in their bodies and it was almost as if they were some kind of monster or demonic being that stalked the earth. In their eyes you could see everything you had ever feared staring at you.

But although he had once been afraid of them and still was, there was an anger inside Brian which refused to back down anymore. These monsters were the reason he wasn’t with B and Sammy right now. They were the reason b had grown up with no parents.

“There’s nothing you can do,” Brian whispered.

The captain shot him a glare. “We are expert at insurrection missions. We won’t fail.”

Brian raised his head and met the cold stare, throwing all the hatred he had bubbling within him into the look and refusing to be the first to break eye contact.

“S-sir!” Joel cried as he lumbered back into the room with his great weight. “Littrell’s right. There has been a lockdown on this area. We can’t go anywhere.”

“God fucking damn it!” the captain yelled as he banged his fists down upon a console in the room, causing Brian to jump in the process. The captain suddenly turned and his eyes glittered like that an enraged beast. “You,” he whispered. Suddenly the captain had placed his hand on his belt and pulled out a silver blade.

Brian felt as cold as the metal as the captain gave another bellow of rage before leaping upon him and pressing the blade against his neck. He gasped and held his breath not daring to breath in case the movement of his throat caused the nib of the blade to slice it open. His body had chilled at the feel of the blade and he found his eyes closing and his heart screaming inside.

“I swear that I am going to find your alter ego and when I do.” He pressed the blade harder against his throat until Brian had to bite onto his tongue to prevent himself from crying out. “When I do, I am going to cut every organ from his body and let him bleed to death while the birds are trying to feed upon his dying carcass. I swear your death will be met when you are him and I will be the one to deliver it.”

The blade was whipped away from his throat and Brian gasped and lowered his face, but his eyes remained upon the captain. “And until that day…” he spat again and hit the captain squarely in the centre of his face.

The captain made no sound as he wiped the substance from his face. He stared at Brian hard. “I was always told you were resilient. It disappoints me how easy you were captured.”

Brian raised his head. His mind could still not comprehend the influence he’d had upon the Gerai. They seemed to see him as sort of warrior or fighter, when in fact Brian was none of these things. He’d had no hard training like Darren or even been taught the basics like Kevin and the others. He was just an ordinary person. The only weapon he had was sheer determination and anger…

“You can’t kill me,” he said, even though his gut still writhed as if trying to hide from the creature before him.

“No,” the captain agreed. He stretched out a hand and grabbed Brian’s hair and used it to pull him to his feet again, causing the younger man to give a muffled squeal as the tender roots were almost yanked from his head. “But hurting…” he yanked the hair hard and grinned as Brian gave another cry. “Is a different matter entirely!”

Brian squirmed and strangled moans escaped his lips as his tender scalp complained sorely. It was difficult to stand with his legs threateningly wobbling below him. Whatever bravery he had possessed before was rapidly beginning to drain away as pain roared inside of him.

The captain finally released him, but Brian did not allow himself to slump back down to the ground like a weak animal in case the captain decided to pull on his hair again. He was almost certain that one more tug would yank it all out.

The captain turned to his men. “Is there no way we can override the lockdown on this area?”

Jole shook his head and the other made similar movements. “It’s impossible. We could go join the assault on the southern end,” he suggested.

The captain shook his head. “There’s not enough of us and they’ll be too many of them heavily guarding it. As for the other entrance.” He cast a look at Brian. “They’re probably locked down as well now thanks to our little friends here. We should leave. It doesn’t matter. We have our new little hacker friend back at our own base who’s going to give us everything we need.” His eyes drifted over to Brian and something about the way they shone and twinkled sent an electric shock tingling through his soul.

The other Gerai nodded, seemingly not too disappointed about the failed attack. Their manner though hinted ominously that they had another plan as a back up.

“Let’s leave,” the captain said. He grabbed hold of Brian’s handcuffed wrists and then shoved him over to Joel. “Keep an eye on him. He’s coming with us.”

“What?” Brian cried. “You can’t!”

“I’m capturing you, not killing you.” A smile spread across his face. “Don’t you want to see your two precious little sprogs? You can see what we’ve done to them. I wonder if the little one will even recognise you anymore…”

The physical pain was suddenly blinded y the tearing inside of his heart. He shook his head. “What have you done to them?”

The captain smiled. “You’ll soon see. The blonde is quite safe but the other has been ill recently.”

Brian’s eyes closed. “The virus…”

The captain laughed as he shouldered his laser. He leaned closer to Brian and dropped his voice to a whisper. “You’ll see what we can do. We can’t kill you, but there are things so much worse than death.”

BACK

NEXT